One of the bigger reasons has to do with the square cube law - as the size of something increases, surface area increases by a factor of 2 but mass increases by a factor of 3, so little fishes have a surface area-to-mass ratio that is quite a bit higher than a larger fish, and they’re more susceptible to abrupt changes in temperature.
Kinda like how an ice cube will melt a lot faster than a big slab of ice, the core temperature of some small fish like a goldfish is gonna change more rapidly than the core temperature of a big fish like a trout so they tend to be a lot more finnicky in regard to significant and instantaneous changes to temperature and stuff. A larger fish might shrug off a significant change because it affects them more slowly, but that might be a totally wild an overwhelming experience for a little fish to go through
And in a similar but completely different way, the fish are being added to massive bodies of water. Home aquariums are minute in comparison, so they can’t balance out chemical swings as easily and are much more prone to higher levels of nitrites and other toxic chemicals. The larger the body of water, the more stable the water quality.
You can yeet goldfish. Carp are stupid tough. It’s the tropical fish we often keep that are kinda wimpy. Also, they’re not coming from a super healthy environment (the store) to our tanks.
One reason is because the hatcheries are in the same general area as the lakes, so conditions are pretty similar. The temperature will be about the same at the same depths as the hatchery, and the water comes from the same source.
I wonder what the survival rate is for these fishes
According to the links in this post It’s 95%-99% survival.
Then why can’t I yeet a bunch of goldfish
One of the bigger reasons has to do with the square cube law - as the size of something increases, surface area increases by a factor of 2 but mass increases by a factor of 3, so little fishes have a surface area-to-mass ratio that is quite a bit higher than a larger fish, and they’re more susceptible to abrupt changes in temperature.
Kinda like how an ice cube will melt a lot faster than a big slab of ice, the core temperature of some small fish like a goldfish is gonna change more rapidly than the core temperature of a big fish like a trout so they tend to be a lot more finnicky in regard to significant and instantaneous changes to temperature and stuff. A larger fish might shrug off a significant change because it affects them more slowly, but that might be a totally wild an overwhelming experience for a little fish to go through
The math actually works, and is quite simple. Just assume the fish is a sphere
in a frictionless vacuum
IMMA YEET THEM SO FAR
something i love about Lemmy is that on the drop of a hat someone is willing to calculate the “surface area to fish ratio”
Problem is, you almost never know if that’s actually true or complete bullshit.
It seems plausible, but killing virgins for rain also seemed plausible back then in the 70s.
And in a similar but completely different way, the fish are being added to massive bodies of water. Home aquariums are minute in comparison, so they can’t balance out chemical swings as easily and are much more prone to higher levels of nitrites and other toxic chemicals. The larger the body of water, the more stable the water quality.
So what I hear you saying is I need a bigger aquarium…
You always need a bigger aquarium
You could probably air drop one goldfish into a 100 gallon tank and it’d be fine (assuming it survived the fall).
And a bigger fish
Technique I imagine.
Skill issue
Try to fly higher above the tank and see if it helps
You can yeet goldfish. Carp are stupid tough. It’s the tropical fish we often keep that are kinda wimpy. Also, they’re not coming from a super healthy environment (the store) to our tanks.
Have a pilots license?
One reason is because the hatcheries are in the same general area as the lakes, so conditions are pretty similar. The temperature will be about the same at the same depths as the hatchery, and the water comes from the same source.
Maybe 95% survive, but how many are injured in a way that might impact their quality of life?
Since these are being dropped specifically for the purpose of being caught and killed asap, quality of life might not matter.
For your sad little goldfish, please be gentle!
Also, gotta think about whether 5% mortality rate is acceptable.
For an airdrop number of pond fish? Sure!
For your hobbyist number of expensive fish? Absolutely not